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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rule · pass · spring · roll · bound · sharp · fan · ground

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. rule — government
  4. ground — crushed
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. roll — a list
  7. roll — a cake
  8. ground — a position
  9. spring — of water
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. bound — obliged
  14. spring — the season
  15. spring — a coil
  16. ground — the earth
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. pass — a permit
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. rule — a law
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bound — certain

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com